Valve mechanism for air conditioning registers



H m E L L R VALVE MECHANISM FOR AIR CONDITIONING REGISTERS Filed July 19, 1947 INVENTOR. ffaberf L. 21 76 ATTORN EY Patented May 30, 1950 VALVE MECHANISM FoR Ant, CONDITION- ING REGISTERS Robert L..- Leigh, Coopersvilla -Mich, assignor to Air Control Products, Inc Coopersville, Mich.

Application July 19, 1947,Serial No; 762,095

Claims.

This invention relatesito improvements in valve .mechanism .for .air conditioning registers.

The-main. objects. of this invention are: :mFiI'St, to.provide anair valve mechanism for air conditioning. registers which is operated by push buttons.

.Second,to provide a register valve mechanism which is easily operated by means of push buttons and at the same time the valve members are ieffectively maintained in both open and closed position.

Third, .to provide a valve mechanism having these advantages which is simple and economical in its parts and at the same time attractive in appearance. i I Otherobjectsandadvantages pertainingto the details and economies of the invention will be apparentfrom a consideration of the following descriptions and claims.

Fig. 1 is a fragmentary rear perspective view of a register embodying my invention, the valves being shown in open position.

Fig. 2 is a vertical central section with the valves in closed position.

The embodiment of my invention illustrated is especially designed as an air conditioning register although adapted for air registers generally. The supporting frame designated by the numeral I is designed to be mounted in a wall or baseboard. The register is provided with a grill or face 2, having a central mullion 3, the mullion being provided with a rearwardly projecting flange 4 on one edge thereof. The louver like valves 5 are formed of sheet metal and are preferably curved in cross section to permit their swinging to completely close as shown in Fig. 2, in which position the valve members overlap each other. The valve members are provided with bead like knuckles portions 6 receiving the pintle 1 engaging the side members of the frame each valve member is provided with a rearwardly projecting ear 8 to which the connecting link 9 is pivotally connected at ll], so that the valve members are simultaneously actuated to open or closed positions.

The valve actuating means comprises the lever I l, which is pivotally mounted at I2 on the rearwardly projecting flange of the mullion. The upper end of this lever is connected by the link I 3 to the ear M on the inner side of the top valve member.

The push buttons l5 and I6 are provided with the stems ll arranged thru holes I8 provided therefor in the mullion. The push button stems are connected at l9 to the lever H, the conopens the valveandathrust on the-push'button t6 closes the valve; To prevent rattling and to hold the valveinopen or closedposition a spring 213 isprovided, oneend of the springbeing connected to the ear 2| on-the lever adjacent 9 its upper end-and the other end is connected to the ea-r:22 on the mullion.- -'Ihe connections to the lever and to the mullion are so-arranged that the spring swings across the leverpivot I2 as the lever is actuated to open or close the valve, this resulting in a snap actionand also resulting in the holding of the valvesin their adjusted position under spring tension.

It is sometimes desired to limit the closed position of .thevalve. and to accomplish this I providedjthe stop 23 which is provided with a supporting-screwZMadjustable in the vertical slot 25 in the mullion. The stop. is shown in dotted linesin position to be engaged bythe lever. The rear edge ofthe-lever is notched at 26 and also. has-an inclined rear portion 27 so that a considerable range of adjustment is possible.

With this arrangement the valve is operated merely by a push on one or the other of the buttons. In practice the buttons being provided with suitable legends, as for example, on and oiff I have illustrated and described my invention in a highly practical embodiment thereof, I have not attempted to illustrate other embodiments and adaptations of my invention as it is believed that this disclosure will enable those skilled in the art to embody and adapt my invention as may be desired.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is:

1. In a structure of the class described the combination with a supporting frame, of a grill provided with a mullion having a rearwardly projecting flange, a plurality of louver like valve members pivotally mounted at their forward edges, a link pivotally connecting said valve members for simultaneous operation, a lever pivotally mounted on the said flange of said mullion, a link connecting said lever to the inner side of one of said valve members, push buttons pivotally connected to said lever on opposite sides of its supporting pivot, said mullion defining openings through which said push buttons are disposed, a spring secured at one end to said mullion and at the other end to said lever adjacent its upper end and so that the spring swings across the lever pivot as the lever is actuated thereby actuating the lever with a snap action and retain it in its adjusted positions, and a lever stop mounted on said mullion for vertical adjustment to limit the valve closing movement of the lever.

2. In a structure of the class described the combination with a supporting frame, of a grill provided with a mullion havinga rearwardly projecting flange, a plurality of louver like valve members pivotally mounted at their forward edges, a link pivotally connecting said valve members for simultaneous operation, a lever pivotally mounted on the said flange of said mullion, a link connecting said lever to the inner side of one of said valve members, push buttons pivotally connected to said lever on opposite sides of its supporting pivot, said mullion defining openings through which said push buttons are disposed, and a lever stop mounted on said mullion for vertical adjustment to limit the valve closing movement of the lever.

3. In a structure of the class described the combination with a supporting frame, of a grill provided with a mullion having a rearwardly projecting flange, a plurality of louver like valve members pivotally mounted at their forward edges, a link pivotally connecting said valve members for simultaneous operation, a lever pivotally mounted on the said flange of said mullion, a link connecting said lever to the inner side of one of said valve members, push buttons pivotally connected to said lever on opposite sides of its supporting pivot, said mullion defining openings through which said push buttons are disposed, a spring secured at one end to said mullion and t the other end to said lever adjacent its upper end and so that the spring swings across the lever pivot as the lever is actuated thereby actuating the lever with a snap action and retain it in its adjusted positions.

4. In a structure of the class described the combination with a supporting frame, of a plurality of pivotally mounted louver like valve members connected for simultaneous operation, a pivotally mounted lever, a link pivotally connected to said lever and to one of said valve members, push buttons connected to said lever on opposite sides of its supporting pivot, a spring connected at one end to said frame and at the other end to said lever to swing across the lever pivot as the lever is actuated thereby actuating the lever with a snap action and acting to yieldably retain it in its adjusted positions under spring tension, and an adjustable stop for said lever.

5. In a structure of the class described the combination with a supporting frame, of a plurality of pivotally mounted louver like valve members connected for simultaneous operation, a pivotally mounted lever, a link pivoted to said lever in spaced relation to said pivot and to one of said valve members, push buttons connected to said lever on opposite sides of its supporting pivot, and a spring connected at one end to said frame and at the other end to said lever to swing across the lever pivot as'the lever is actuated thereby actuating the lever with a snap action and acting to yieldably retain it in its adjusted positions under tension of the spring.

ROBERT L. LEIGH.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,598,067 Englert Aug. 31, 1926 1,640,566 Englert Aug. 30, 1927 2,299,832 Mader Oct. 27, 1942 2,439,444 Babcock et al Apr. 13, 1948 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 172,648 Switzerland Jan. 2, 1935 

